Harnessing gut microbes for glycan detection and quantification.

ABSTRACT: Glycans facilitate critical biological functions and control the mammalian gut microbiota composition by supplying differentially accessible nutrients to distinct microbial subsets. Therefore, identifying unique glycan substrates that support defined microbial populations could inform therapeutic avenues to treat diseases via modulation of the gut microbiota composition and metabolism. However, examining heterogeneous glycan mixtures for individual microbial substrates is hindered by glycan structural complexity and diversity, which presents substantial challenges to glycomics approaches. Fortuitously, gut microbes encode specialized sensor proteins that recognize unique glycan structures and in-turn activate predictable, specific, and dynamic transcriptional responses. Here, we harness th

SUBMITTER: Modesto JL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9845299 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature